In the following piece, we delve into
our culture’s ludicrous practice of mindless chat that seems to dominate entire
conversations when, truly, they should not be discussed for more than a few
minutes, or in lieu of a winning personality and wit (discounting a somewhat
endurable one, for that matter).
By Crystal Dorscht, a W.O. student
As I walk the halls, my ears
begin to metaphorically bleed. I continue past the library where, perhaps
ironically, my eyelids shutter and my brain shuts down for a few moments in
order to endure through my short-leashed tolerance. I shuffle unobtrusively
past the stairs to the bleachers when, suddenly, I hear the chiming of
something… more. Abruptly I hear the
words, “like,” followed directly by, “OMG,” forming the classic phrase, “like,
OMG,” in a high-strung, urgent voice that always precedes some obviously horrifying
tale or statement full of the indignities and trials of life. “Like, OMG, did
you hear? Justin Biker totally dumped
Helena Gomez… how dare he! But – OMG –now he’s totally available!!!” Flinching, I walk briskly toward my locker
once again.
It’s
not only at W.O. that I hear these cringe-worthy phrases and sentences and –
heaven help me – whole conversations. As a side: honestly – how does one carry
on a whole conversation about who broke up with whom, what shade of purple best
highlights one’s baby-blue eyes, and who won how many premeditated matches in
the world of boxing (do people still watch that any more, or is it UFC, all the
way?)? I hear conversations similar to those in W.O. in the tall grey office
buildings found in downtown Toronto: “Oh my good-ness, did you hear what Mr. S said today? He says some of the most
stupid things…” Well, no, ma’am, I wasn’t actually there, but many people would
certainly agree with you in that many people say many stupid things. Not stupid, perhaps, but certainly aimless. And
that is why frivolous, inane drivel should be omitted from conversations.
 |
| Oscar Wilde |
Admittedly,
not all people can refrain from speaking nonsense. It is often not conscious
effort that brings forth profundity but rather intelligence and – often – research.
However, it is more than probable that we can offer the world something more
when we stop to think about it instead of rushing onward without a backward
glance, with our noses tucked too far up in places where the sun don’t shine. This
is not to say that everyone must speak and write like Oscar Wilde; one need
simply devote one conversation, every once and a while, to something worthy of
prolonged thought.
In a
twenty-four hour period, nearly everyone with minds capable of complexity
reported partaking in some sort of leisure activity, like swimming, or
socializing, or playing video games, for an average of 5.1 hours. The number
one way that individuals spent this free time was by becoming a couch potato
for about 2.5 hours after work. Socializing came second in this contest of
amusement, with the average amount of hours spent amounting to 0.75.
During
the working day – that 8 hour interval where the suffering and suffocating
takes place – people also spend a great amount of time chatting it up with
their co-workers (or fellow students, though the percentages would be much
higher). According to a survey, fifty to eighty percent of the workday is
devoted to communicating, with two-thirds of that time spent on talking.
This
means that about 7.5 hours are devoted to speaking to our fellow human beings;
this in turn means that roughly one-third of a typical day is spent
socializing. One-half of our waking hours are spent with our larynx under
constant pressure. The point is that we are social beings. We like to
communicate and connect with others like ourselves. Surely in this large frame
of time, we can find something to
talk about that is of more import than the mercurial weather.
While
we’re on the subject, let’s delve into the issue of depth of thought. There is
a world full of possibilities, as clichéd as the saying may be. There are
millions of topics just waiting to be discussed. Discussing commonplace gossip
and trivial matters is just flogging a dead horse, as my astute math teacher
used to say. The horse is dead, already – leave it be!
Just
the other day, I walked in on a heated conversation between some of my
relatives. Words were splattered across the wall, dripping down the pristine
surface, the ink staining the grained hardwood. I paused in shock, hearing the
conviction in my one relative’s voice and the condemnation in the other’s.
“Relative”
might be too loose of a description for one of the participants: my father. He
doesn’t prevaricate when it comes to something he believes in. He is often
given the opportunity to voice his concerns (and very loudly, I might add).
Instead
of nodding submissively at an impassive comment that my relative had made, my
father remarked that she was a dolt for believing what she did, and proceeded
to demonstrate how much of one she was with facts and feeling. She eventually
conceded, none the worse for wear, but changed, nonetheless.
There
are a multitude of things that one can discuss during the interminable hours of
the school – or work – day. One might choose to discuss topics where thought
has clearly been well-placed, such as well-loved novels or a thought-provoking
blog. Perhaps one might choose to ponder why one must suffer through the days
hearing conversations that make one’s ears metaphorically bleed. Perhaps
Premier Dalton McGuinty irks you, makes you want to slap him silly, or simply
tell him to listen to the nice lady talk for one moment, because she obviously
isn’t like the other lying, conniving politicians who want your vote so that he
or she can spend the next four years saving face for failing to do something
that she said that she would do in the first place at the time of the election.
Oh, wait a minute…
 |
| Our Premier, Dalton McGuinty |
But
in all seriousness, anything is possible if you just believe. If you want to
score a goal in soccer, it’s possible. If you want to beat your best friend’s
score on COD, it is possible. If you want to wax poetical, it is possible.
Therefore, if you want to speak intelligently, it is also possible. No, really,
it’s true. But one thing that should be taken under serious consideration is
that frivolous drivel should be limited in conversation, at the very least.
There – I’ve thrown down the gauntlet; will you accept the challenge?
References:
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1460-2466.1972.tb00141.x/abstract
http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/censusandstatistics/a/averageday.htm
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